Sunday, January 18, 2015

Views of Tom Sawyer Island, 1956

This morning I was scrolling through my recent scans, and found two photos of Tom Sawer Island, both taken in 1956, from almost the same exact angle, but taken by two different photographers. I thought it might be fun to play "compare and contrast", but other than the angle of the sun, they're so darn similar there isn't much that's different.

This first one is the nicer of the two, with a blue sky, and the pea-soup green water that is reminiscent of a big ol' muddy river. Tom Sawyer Island didn't open until June of 1956, and although photos can be deceiving, this one sure has a summer feel to it.


This next one has a harsher look, with the sun more to the west. The trees look the same as in photo #1, almost down to the very leaf. I counted! As before, a raft awaits guests who are ready to head back to the mainland. 


3 comments:

  1. There's no red kegs/barrels on the other raft and a duck in the water. Besides that and the guests, I don't see much difference. Love that muddy green water. Thanks, Major.

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  2. The only other difference I can find between the photos is a pair of lost sunglasses on the bottom of the river in the second photo that isn't there in the first.

    Both of these photos seem to have been taken before the unfortunate raft explosion that scattered a shipment of Cervidae antlers all over the island. Most were quickly cleaned up, but an ill-timed, nationwide ladder shortage left a few on the roof of the Old Mill to bleach elegantly in the Southern California sun for many years afterwards.

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  3. Thanks as always, Major.

    Wow, those pictures are just eerily identical. I really like the way the tip of the island is so natural looking with bare dirt running nearly down to water's edge.

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